Theory of Production: A Long-Period Analysis

by Heinz D. Kurz, Neri Salvadori

Overview

This book contains a comprehensive treatment of the theory of production in a long-period framework. The issues dealt with include prices and income distribution, economic growth, joint production, fixed capital, scarce natural resources (both renewable and exhaustible), and heterogeneous labor. The issues are treated analytically; in addition, the book's introduction provides a history of the subject.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521588676
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	02/28/1997
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	592
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 1.30(d)

Table of Contents

1. Free competition and long-period positions; 2. A one-commodity model; 3. Two-commodity models; 4. Models with any number of commodities; 5. Choice of technique; 6. Alternative descriptions of a 'technique'; 7. Fixed capital models; 8. Joint production; 9. Models with jointly utilized machines; 10. Land; 11. Persistent wage and profit rate differentials; 12. On limits to the long-period method; 13. Production as a circular flow and the concept of surplus; 14. The neoclassical theory of distribution and the problem of 'capital'; 15. On some alternative theories of distribution; Mathematical appendix.

Editorial Reviews

"...a pleasure to read. By placing inherently technical subjects in historical perspective, Kurz and Salvadori have brought life to subject matter that can be tedious. This work will interest scholars in economic theory, the history of economic thought, and many other fields." Journal of Economic Literature

"...Kurz and Salvadori have provided theorists and historians of economic thought with a rigorous, up-to-date treatment of the classical long-period theory of value which links 'the inseparable problems of production and distribution.' A rare beld of economic thought, formal argument, and challenges to the problem solver, this book should rapidly become a standard reference for students and a base-camp for researchers pursuing answers to the difficult problems posed by modern classical theory." Eastern Economic Journal

"The Kurz-Salvadori Theory of Production is a tour de force that provides a needed authoritative survey of modern competitive theory on technology and prices. It seems a golden mean between mathematical complexities, policy alternatives, and historical geneses. I expect to wear out a copy every two years from extensive use." Paul A. Samuelson, MIT

"An authoritative survey of modern competitive theory on technology and price." Business Horizons

"Theory of Production is a balanced, thorough and deep book, a model of careful scholarship; it is destined to be essential reading for the profession for decades to come." G. C. Harcourt, University of Cambridge

"Theory of Production is a remarkably clear and precise statement of linear economic theory post-Sraffa. And it tackles the issues of land, exhaustible and renewable sources, and heterogeneous labour—issues often avoided in such a framework. The sound analytical work is complemented by substantial Historical notes in most chapters and the work is a pleasure to read." Ian Steedman, University of Manchester

"This book provides a thoroughly up-to-date and mathematically rigorous treatment of the equilibrium properties of Piero Sraffa's model of production, distribution and price determination. The work is well written, the subject matter carefully arranged and a great deal of effort has gone into the selection of exercises." Lynn Mainwaring, University of Wales, Swansea

"This book will be of interest to a wide range of economists, not just Neo-Ricardians. It will be important because it strives to present a complete account of the formal properties of the models of production while refraining from linking the analysis too closely with a specific interpretation of the classical theory of value, the dynamics of accumulation, and the problem of effective demand." Bertram Schefold, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt am Main

"In this impressive book, Heinz, Kurz & Neri Salvadori provide a comprehensive and sophisticated account of the modern thoery of production....No brief review can do justice to the richness of this book. Perhaps its most valuable contribution is in showing that there exists a robust alternative to the neoclassical theory of value and distribution....This book offers the most complete available account of those theoretical issues that underlie every important problem in economics. It is a remarkable achievement." Gary Mongiovi, Review of Political Economy

From the Publisher